Abstract [en]

Regular and intensive language training has been proven to be essential to improve language ability of people with chronic aphasia. The use of computer based programs can be an effective way to obtain this amount of training. The computer based programs mostly used by speech and language pathologists in Sweden are Lexia and the Mac programs. No previous study has evaluated the effectiveness of these programs in treatment of aphasia, something that the present study aimed to investigate. There were eight participants in this study with chronic aphasia who were randomised into two groups. Cross-over design was applied, which meant that the groups practiced with Lexia and the Mac programs in opposite order. Training was conducted in two periods, each with the training intensity of 45 minutes, two times each weekday for two consistent weeks. The training periods took place three months apart. Three different tests; A-ning, the Token Test and the Boston Naming Test, were used to evaluate the language ability of the participants before and after the periods of training. In addition to the test results questions were asked about the participants’ experiences of the training with each computer based program. According to results from A-ning the participants reached statistically significant improvement of language ability after the first (p = .015) and the second (p = .026) period of intensive computer-based language training with Lexia and the Mac programs respectively. Results from A-ning also showed that the improvement of the language ability was statistically significant after training with Lexia (p = .01) as well as training with the Mac programs (p = .034). However the effect size was larger for training with Lexia (.91) than for the Mac programs (.75). The participants reported the Mac programs to be slightly more fun and educational than Lexia, mostly because they found Lexia to be addressed to younger people. The results from the present study indicate that training with Lexia as well as the Mac programs can improve language ability in people with chronic aphasia.